TOP TABLES ❘ À LA CARTE
“It will make you feel better, I promise you,” he said; and cowed, we agreed. And he was right. The tiny, tight bubbles lightened our moods and brought the world into cheerful focus. Still, I wasn’t very hungry and neither was my brother. We were still staring blankly at our menus when he returned. “May I make a suggestion?” he said with a little smile that suddenly seemed like it might be complicit. We nodded solemnly.
“Onion soup, and then a big tray of oysters, and a bottle of Muscadet, because you probably don’t have much money left.” I wasn’t sure about the oysters in my fragile state but my brother signed off on our meal, which became hilarious when a tiny dog stood up out of the handbag
of the woman sitting alone next to us and licked my brother’s hand. Seeing nothing, he nearly leapt to the ceiling, and then we laughed, and ate our soup, and by the time the oysters came we were hugely happy and all was right in the world again. Terminus Nord has a way of doing this. You don’t come here for a gastronomic meal, but rather a good solid French one, often before or after a train. It’s a lovely place to say hello or goodbye to Paris, and the spectacle of the busy dining room, the wisecracking but impeccably professional waiters and the shimmer of a certain metropolitan glamour make it a quintessentially Parisian address, especially because it’s open daily for lunch and dinner.
On this most recent visit, I stopped in here because I was going to spend the weekend in London with a dear friend who’s a terrible cook. So after some smoked salmon to start, I hesitated between a good Strasbourg- style choucroute garni (sauerkraut with sausages and pork), sole meunière, steak tartare or scallops in champagne sauce. The sole won out, and it was beautifully prepared, as was the vanilla millefeuille with which I concluded my meal. Needless to say, I know I’ll be back again, and next time as a couple so that we can share their very good crêpes Suzette flamed in Grand Marnier. 23 rue Dunkerque, Paris 10th. Tel. +33 (0)1 42 85 05 15.
www.terminusnord.com FT
From top: A home from home near the Gard du Nord; this is proper brasserie fare; Terminus Nord is the perfect place to say hello or goodbye to Paris
Apr/May 2020 FRANCE TODAY ❘ 77
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